The Seductress
by flwrs81
Summary: One night Rhett meets a seductive young woman. Can he resist the temptation. Takes places after the book.


Rhett entered the dimly lit room. His eyes scanned the room and immediately his gaze fell upon a beautiful woman sitting alone in the corner. As their eyes met the woman gave him a seductive smile. Rhett turned his attention to getting a drink and a seat. Not long after he settled in his chair, he could feel someone settle into the chair next to his. He wasn't surprised when he looked over and saw that it was the beautiful woman.

"Buy a lady a drink?" She asked in a husky voice. Rhett looked her up and down. The gown she was wearing was so low cut it was indecent. Rhett let his gaze linger on what she was putting clearly on display.

"If a lady comes in here, I will." He saw the woman bristle from his insult. She leaned forward so that her breasts were lying on his arm. She lightly put one of her hands on his upper thigh.

"You look lonesome tonight, stranger." She whispered in his ear. Rhett allowed himself to enjoy the hand on his thigh for several moments before gently removing the woman's hand. He shifted his position in his chair, hoping she wouldn't notice the effect she was having on him. He held up his left hand displaying the ring he had been wearing for almost ten years now.

"I'm a married man, miss." Rhett looked at her hand and noticed she wore no ring. "No husband?"

The woman chuckled softly. She shook her head no, but all Rhett was watching was how her breasts jiggled as she did that.

"No man has been able to tame me yet, stranger."

"That I can believe."

"If you were my husband I would never let you come into a place like this alone." Somehow the woman's hand was back on Rhett's leg, even higher on his thigh than it was the first time.

"I'm a very trustworthy husband." She chuckled as she gently squeezed Rhett's leg. Rhett turned his attention to his whiskey bottle. After pouring himself another drink, he turned back to the woman. Rhett couldn't be sure but he thought the woman's neck line dipped several more inches. He met the woman's gaze but she just smiled at him innocently. She leaned in close to him again.

"Come on, stranger. I live very close to here and I can be very discreet." She whispered in his ear. She placed a small kiss on his ear lobe. Rhett bit back a groan. He shifted away from her again. Again he held up his hand.

"I'm sorry, miss. I really must refuse." He sat back and watched as he could tell that she was planning her next plan of attack. She began to scan the room.

"Hmm, there's that grey eyed, golden haired man sitting over there, perhaps he would appreciate my charms." She stood up to walk away. Rhett grabbed her arm. The woman smiled at him victoriously; she knew she was finally going to get what she had been after all evening. Rhett matched her triumphant smiled with one of his own.

"I win, Scarlett, you cheated."

"I did not cheat!" She huffed at him.

"Using jealousy to win is clearly a rule violation. You made the rule up yourself." She crossed her arms under her breasts. She was a sore loser, but she always played fair.

"Fine. You win this time, Rhett." Rhett stood up from their dining room table; his arousal was plain to see. "Hmm, maybe it was a draw."

"You should have stayed with it you would have won fair and square, my pet." With that Scarlett thrust her nose in the air and marched towards the dining room doors. Rhett easily caught up with her in a few strides. Normally, when it was time for Rhett to claim his prize he liked to throw Scarlett over his shoulder, but Scarlett was in a delicate condition so he picked her up and held her gently in his arms. She placed kissed along his jaw and on his ear as he carried her up the stairs to their bedroom.

"Where's your wedding ring, Mrs. Butler?"

"Oh, Rhett, I'm as big as a house now. It doesn't fit me right now." Rhett looked his wife over, she had started putting on weight from her pregnancy but she was still smaller than most women he knew. Rhett kicked the door closed behind them and gently put her on the bed. He put his hands under her nightgown and slowly inched the material up her body. He kissed her body parts as they became exposed. He had the gown up to her thighs when their bedroom door creaked open. Rhett groaned and rolled over to his side of the bed. Scarlett quickly fixed her nightgown, as their son made his way into their room.

"Mommy! I's scared!" Scarlett opened her arms wide and encouraged him to crawl into their bed. Their son was the three year old but Rhett thought he might be the one to have a tantrum.

"Oh, no! Tell me what happened, sugar."

"A monster chased me around my room and swallowed me whole!"

"That must have been terribly scary." Scarlett gently stroked their son's hair. Their son simply nodded his head.

"Mommy, can I sleep here tonight?" Rhett shot Scarlett a look to tell her to not even think about it. He wasn't nearly done with her yet. Rhett was glad that she was a better mother to their son than she had been with any of her other kids; even Bonnie, but on nights like this he missed the cold woman that would have sent the child back to his room with a harsh word. It wasn't that Rhett didn't love his son; it was just that the boy seemed to have the worst timing in the world.

"How about you stay here until you fall back asleep, then I'll take you back to your room?" He put his thumb into his mouth and nodded his head.

"Daddy, tell me a story."

"Once upon a time, there was a noble knight named Robert. He had been invited to a party being thrown in the honor of the evil prince of Nine Pines." Scarlett chuckled at Rhett's story. Rhett was at the part of the story when the noble knight paid a ghastly sum of money to dance with a bewitching maiden with sparkling green eyes, when he felt Scarlett gently touch his arm.

"He's sleeping, oh noble knight," she whispered. She made a move to get out of bed when Rhett grabbed their son from her arms. He placed a kiss on her forehead and carried their son back to his room. Rhett hugged his son close to him as he walked down the hall. The story he told made him think about how he almost walked away from all of this. He could feel tears forming in his eyes as he thought of the possibility of not having his son or the new baby that would be joining their family in a few months.

Rhett and Scarlett's estrangement hadn't lasted long at all. In fact, the estrangement hadn't even lasted an entire day. Rhett had taken his carpetbag to the train station. He would send for the rest of his belongings later, he needed to get out of the house as quickly as possible. He bought a ticket for Charleston and sat on a bench at the depot with his head in his hands. When the train for Charleston was being boarded, Rhett sat back and watched. He couldn't make himself stand up and get on the train. As they called out the final boarding call, Rhett hadn't moved from his spot. He reassured himself that there were plenty of trains to Charleston; eventually he would make himself get on one. Sometime later that afternoon, Rhett wasn't sure if what he saw next was a hallucination, a ghost or just a young woman but he saw a teenaged girl in a green bonnet wandering through the train station. The bonnet looked like the one that he had brought Scarlett back from Paris. He tried to remember if he had ever told Scarlett that having that bonnet made for her was the only reason he went to Paris on that trip. Of course, he never told her; she might have figured out what his true feelings for her were if he had. He wondered what had happened to that bonnet. Probably another causality of the war. Some Yankee had probably given it to his sweetheart when he got back from the war. Rhett knew at that moment that it was no use; he would never be able to leave her. He picked up his carpetbag and left the train station.

When he returned to their monstrosity of a house; he went directly to her bedroom. He let himself into the room without knocking. She was lying face down on the bed; her body was still quaking from her sobs. He went to the bed and sat next to her. Slowly, she sat up. She looked at him as if she was afraid that if she spoke he would take off running again. He pulled her close to him.

"I couldn't get on the train," he whispered in her ear. She wrapped her arms around him, but still didn't speak.

"There have to be some changes, Scarlett. First, this is our room again. Only under doctor's orders will we ever sleep in separate rooms again." She nodded in agreement.

"No more cross purposes." She nodded her head again. Rhett took a deep breath. His final request was the one that could be a deal breaker.

"No more Ashley Wilkes. After Melanie is laid to rest I want him out of your life. Beau is still welcome here and the children can go see him. We can set up a fund for Beau and I have enough connections to send plenty of business his way. That should meet Melanie's final request." Rhett held his breath and waited for her angry words.

"Fine, Rhett. But no more Belle either." Rhett hadn't expected her to give up on Ashley so easily. Maybe she really had been telling the truth earlier. Rhett was at a loss about what to do about Belle. He felt that the two situations were completely different. But he knew if they were really going to give their marriage another chance they both were going to have to be willing to make sacrifices. He looked deep into her eyes.

"No more Belle." Tentatively Scarlett brought her lips to his. Rhett couldn't remember the last time the two of them shared a kiss. It had to have been the night of Ashley's party. Slowly, she pulled away. She rested her forehead against his.

"I have to go back to their house. Everyone is counting on me to make the arrangements." He brought her hand to his mouth and placed a gentle kiss on it.

"Let me go with you and help." Scarlett nodded her head and gave him a faint smile.

"Thank you, Rhett." He wasn't sure if she was thanking him for offering to help or for not leaving.

After Melanie's funeral concluded, Rhett stood off in a corner by himself. He stood and watched as Scarlett told Ashley good bye in more ways than one. When Ashley's sad and angry eyes met his he knew that Scarlett had told him that she was never going to see him again. Scarlett gave Ashley's shoulder a gentle squeeze before she walked away. Scarlett walked up to Beau. She knelt down to give him a kiss and a hug. She gathered Wade and Ella, put her arm through Rhett's arm and they left the Wilkes' household.

The morning after Melanie's funeral, Rhett went to his lawyer to dissolve his partnership with Belle. He gave her full ownership of her sporting house. He discreetly made his way to Belle's house. He found her in her private quarters enjoying her breakfast.

"I's thought you lef' town."

"Couldn't do it. I want to try again with her." Belle let out a harsh laugh.

"Why you set yerself up fer heartache. She ain't eva gonna love you. Hasn't you learnt that yet?"

"She told me she loves me."

"She prolly saw her money walkin out the door."

"No. I can always tell when she's lying. She wasn't." Rhett handed her the papers he just drew up with his lawyers.

"What's dis?"

"I'm giving you full ownership of the house." Belle's face went unnaturally pale.

"Why?"

"She agreed to cut Ashley out of her life and I agreed to cut you out." Belle threw the papers back at his face.

"I don't want it. We's been friends longer than you knows her, Rhett!"

"She's my wife. You know better than anyone that I have been in love with her since I've met her."

"You's really just gonna walk away frum our friendship?" Rhett gently put his hand under Belle's chin.

"Yes. I'm willing to do anything for her. Always have been."

"Fine. Go back ta her. But when she breaks yer heart agin, you go elsewhere ter soothe it."

Rhett was saddened that this was going to be his final interaction with Belle. They had been friends and business partners for years and he had hoped that they would have been able to part on good terms. Rhett left Belle's sporting house for the final time.

When Rhett returned he was surprised to find Scarlett in the nursery with Wade, Ella and Beau. She was telling the children a funny story about her, Ashley, Charles and Melanie when they were young children. Rhett could tell by the shining eyes of the children that they had all been crying; most likely over Melanie, and Scarlett was trying to cheer them all up. The children were all laughing when Scarlett finished her story. She finally noticed Rhett standing in the doorway. She walked over to him and he led her to what was once again their bedroom.

"I told Belle."

"Oh, Rhett!" She threw her arms around his neck and began to kiss him passionately.

"It's just us now, no more ghosts."

"Just us," she agreed.

Everyone in Atlanta agreed that Melanie's last good deed on Earth had been bringing the Butlers back together. It was no secret in Atlanta that the Butler marriage had been on shaky ground for years. But ever since the passing of Mrs. Wilkes the pair seemed happier than a newlywed couple. The obvious bliss displayed by the Butlers once and for all laid the rumors of Scarlett and Ashley to rest.

One night as they were cuddled together in bed, Scarlett asked Rhett a question.

"What do you think it would be like if we met now instead of twelve years ago?"

"Hmmm, I don't know. I don't think either of us would be the same if we hadn't met each other twelve years ago." Scarlett pondered his answer.

"Yes, I suppose you would still be a dedicated bachelor. And I would still be the ever grieving widow of Charles Hamilton." A shadow passed over Scarlett's face. "I probably would have lost Tara."

"What makes you think that?"

"If I didn't know you, I wouldn't have had a reason to go to Atlanta for the tax money."

"Well, it was a good thing we met when we did."

That conversation led to the beginnings of the game that Scarlett and Rhett liked to play. At first it started out innocently enough. When they started it was just the two of them pretending to be strangers meeting for the first time; there was no seduction involved. But one night Rhett walked into the dining room and the table was only set for two people. Instead of her place at the opposite end of the table, Rhett noticed that her place was set next to his. Rhett asked one of the maids where Wade and Ella were.

"Miss Scarlett asked that they be fed earlier then sent off ter spend the night with Mist' Beau." Rhett chuckled and wondered what his wife was up to now. It was then that Scarlett breezed into the dining room. She was wearing her green watered silk gown. It was one of Rhett's favorites. Her hair fell in loose waves around her shoulders. She gave Rhett a polite smile before she sat down.

"I do detest eating alone. It makes me feel so very lonely. Don't you agree, Mister?"

"Uh, Butler. Captain Rhett Butler, at your service ma'am. As to answer your question, I've had many years of lone meals I guess I no longer notice the loneliness, miss?"

"O'Hara. But you can call me Scarlett."

"Miss O'Hara, we only just met. It would be highly improper of me to call you by your first name." Scarlett laughed.

"Sorry, Captain Butler, didn't mean to offend a gentleman such as yourself."

They made idle chit chat as they ate their dinner. Rhett was surprised when he suddenly felt Scarlett's foot travel up the length of his leg. She used her foot to tease his manhood before slowly dragging it back down his leg.

"Miss O'Hara, you are quite an inappropriate lady," he teased.

"Captain Butler, a good friend of mine likes to point out that I am no lady. I used to disagree with him but I think he might be right." Her foot traveled his leg again. Rhett noticed the proud gleam in her eye when she felt his arousal this time.

"Ladies aren't any fun anyways." Rhett pulled her out of her chair and into his lap. She loosened his cravat and began to unbutton his shirt as he kissed her. He ran his fingers through her silky tresses. Rhett was surprised when Scarlett suddenly turned around and knocked their dishes off of the table. She got off of Rhett's lap and sat on the edge of the table. She put one leg on either side of Rhett's chair. Rhett reached under her dress and ran his hands up her leg. He was delighted by the fact that she hadn't put any of her undergarments on. He leaned forward to kiss her again.

"What about the servants?" He whispered, he didn't want to interrupt the game with reality.

"Dismissed for the night," she whispered back. Rhett couldn't believe Scarlett's new found boldness as he made love to his wife on the dining room table.

Rhett was the first one to try to bring jealousy into their new game. Neither one of them could refuse the other for very long but Scarlett was much better at holding out longer than he was. So, one night they were in the library and it was Rhett's turn to seduce Scarlett. She was doing a good job at playing the cold hearted, uninterested party. Scarlett sat on the couch, pretending to read a novel. Rhett sat down next to her and wrapped his arm around her waist. Scarlett gasped.

"Captain Butler! Remember yourself! We have only just met. It is highly improper for you to handle me in that fashion!" She brought the book back up to her face but Rhett caught her look of smug satisfaction clearly written on her face.

"Miss O'Hara, I find myself swept off my feet by your charms." He nuzzled her ear and neck. Scarlett stood suddenly and went to a different chair across the room. Rhett chuckled when he noticed that her book was now upside down. Rhett sat on the floor at her feet. He removed her hand from the book she was pretending to read and placed kisses on each of her fingers. He could feel Scarlett's pulse racing so he knew she was enjoying what he was doing to her.

"Captain Butler, you seem to have gotten the wrong impression of me. I am a great lady held in the highest regard. I'm asking you politely once last time to unhand me." Rhett couldn't help but laugh at her for calling herself a great lady. He had been at this for nearly an hour now. He didn't like that she was able to turn him down so easily when he always gave into her charms swiftly.

"Sorry, Miss O'Hara." Rhett knew it was a dirty trick but he wondered if jealousy would make her succumb to his advances. "Miss O'Hara, would you be able to give me directions to Belle's sporting house? I'm new in town and haven't quite got my bearings yet."

Rhett knew he made a crucial mistake as soon as he looked into Scarlett's eyes. No longer were they sparking with joyous mischief; now the only held jealousy, sadness and contempt. Without saying a word, Scarlett stormed out of the library up to their bedroom. Rhett cautiously followed behind her. He fully expected the door to be locked or at the very least for her to throw something at him. Instead, he found her crying on the bed.

"Scarlett, I'm sorry. That was foolish of me."

"We can't use jealousy, Rhett. It's only going to make us hurt each other." He nodded his head in agreement. So, the first and only rule of their game had been established.

Eleven months after their near estrangement, Scarlett gave birth to their son. Her pregnancy filled the couple with joy and apprehension. First, they were worried about Scarlett's health but Dr. Meade assured them that Scarlett appeared to be perfectly healthy and that she shouldn't have any complications. Then they were afraid that the child would drive a wedge into their marriage. But unlike when she was pregnant with Bonnie, Scarlett was happy about this baby. Scarlett figured this is what her last pregnancy would have been like if she hadn't lost the baby. The final fear was that they would have another daughter. Neither of them was sure that they could handle the heart ache of having a girl. There would only ever be one Bonnie but if they were to have a girl she would forever have to live in Bonnie's shadow. They named their son Rhett Kenneth Butler Junior, but everyone called him Kenny. He was an exact copy of Rhett save for the fact that he had inherited his mother's sparkling green eyes.

Rhett tucked his son back into his bed and kissed him on the forehead. He whistled as he made his way back to his bedroom. He knew he was much happier than he had a right to be. When he walked back into his room he was surprised that Scarlett wasn't in bed where he left her. He wandered through the house looking for her. He chuckled when he walked into the library only to find her lounging nude on the sofa. Again, she was pretending to read and again the book was upside down. Rhett stood watching her; he knew that she was aware of his presence.

"Sir, you should have made your presence known!"

"Sorry, miss; it's not every day one finds a comely woman such as you lounging nude in one's library." The next part of Scarlett's act was quickly forgotten when her face lit up with joy.

"Oh! The baby's moving, Rhett." She reached for his hand and placed it on her stomach. Rhett couldn't describe the joy he felt as he felt the life moving inside his wife. He kissed his wife on the lips.

"I love you."

"I love you more, Rhett Butler."

Five months later the Butlers were blessed with another son. Both of them were secretly happy it had been another boy. They named him Gerald Henry Butler. They continued to play their silly game of seduction way into their golden years. Which they lived happily ever after.


End file.
